Apparatus for handling tubes or bars.



No. 647,87l, Patented Apr. l7, I900. P. C. PATTERSON.

APPARATUS FOR HANDLING TUBES 0B BARS.

2 Sheets-Sheet 1 (Application filed July 5, 1898.) (No Model.

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2 Sheets-Sheet P. C. PATTERSON. APPARATUS FOR HANDLING TUBES 0R BARS. (Application filad July 5, 1898.3 (No Model.)

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ITED- ST PATENT (lFEIcE.

PETER CHARLES PATTERSON, OF MoKEEsPoRT, PENNSYLVANIA, ASSIGNOR ToTI-IE NATIONAL TUBE COMPANY, OF 'NEw YO K, N. Y., AND PITTSBURG, PENNSYLVANIA.

APPARATUS FOR HANDLING TUBES OR BARS.

SPECIFICATION formingpart of Letters Patent No. 647,871, dated April 17, 1900.

Application filed July 5, 1898. Serial No. 685,221. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, PETER CHARLES PATTER- SON, a resident of McKeesport, in the county of Allegheny and State of Pennsylvania, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Apparatus for Handling Tubes or Bars; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description thereof.

My invention relates to apparatus for handling tubes and bars, such as the troughs and cooling-tables used in the manufacture of tubing, its object being to provide for the discharge of the tubes from the troughs to which they are delivered by the rolls onto the cooling-tables, the work being done automatically, if desired, the apparatus also being applicable to the discharge of solid bars or rods from like receiving-troughs.

In the manufacture of tubing after the tnbe,whether lap-weld or butt-weld, has been welded in the rolls or bell it is generally sized by passing it through regular concave rolls of Somewhat-smaller diameter than the welding-rolls or bell and then passes to what are known as cross-rolls, which'serve to bring it to true cylindrical shape. From these rolls it passes into a trough and is required to be delivered from that trough onto asuitable cooling-table.

The special object of the presentinvention is to provide for such delivery and to make such delivery automatic.

The invention comprises, generally stated, the combination, with the trough and the cooling-table or like apparatus, of a discharging-head rising within the trough and lifting the tube therefrom and discharging it from one side of the trough onto the cooling table or platform, the tube then rolling down into position to beengaged by the fingers carried on the traveling chains on the table by which it is gradually carried along and rotated on said table during cooling.

It also comprises suitable stop mechanism in line with the trough, by which the tubeitself will automatically cause the operat'on of the discharging-head, such mechanism being preferably operated by fluid-pressure both for the raising of the discharging-head and for the return of the same to its normal position, the tube striking in its movement against a valve-operating disk in its course, which moves the valve to admit pressure to the ram for raising the head, and after the head is raised to the desired height the valve mechanism providing for the automatic dropping of the head to normal position, as hereinafter described.

To enable others skilled in the art to make and use my invention, I will describe the same more fully, referring to the accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 is a plan view of the trough, showing the cross-rolls arranged to, feed the tub ing thereto. Fig. 2 is an enlarged side view of the rear end of the trough, showing in section the ram for operating the discharginghead. Fig.3 is an enlarged cross-section showing the trough and the ram-cylinder in vertical section and the ram with its discharging-head in full lines and also showing the relative position of the same to the coolingtable. Fig. i is a cross-section on the line 4 4,

Fig. 2, indicating the relative positions of the valve-disk, stop, and trough. Figs. 5, 6,

and 7 are detail views of the valve mechanism, and Fig. 8 is a detail of a modification of the discharging-head.

Like letters indicate like parts in each of the figures. I

The trough A is supported at each end on screw-jacks a, by which it is adjusted into proper position both in connection with the cross-rolls B and the valve mechanism 0, which operates the discharging-head, hereinafter described. At the side of the trough A is the cooling table or platform D, which receives the tubes from the trough. The

trough A is of proper length to receive the pass onto the table, the. bars being carried by the trough, so as to provide for the adjustment of the trough, as found necessary.

The cooling-table has the bars d, which extend at the opposite incline to the bars a, said bars being supported on the bases (1 such as by the angle-irons 01 the table having the sprocket-wheels g mounted therein, around which the chains g pass, said chains carrying the hooks or fingers 9 which rise above the bars 01 of the table and engage with the tubes and carrythem along the table, rolling them over in their course, so as to expose all sides thereof,"and, carrying them slowly along the table to the point of discharge, so providing for their cooling. The table can be made of any desired length, according to the size, of the tubing or the speed of the travel of the chain. Mounted in the trough A is the discharging-head h, which fits within a seat,'the upper face h of the head being Y- shaped, so as to center the tube thereon and control the sidewise movement of the tube in discharging it from the trough. This head may be operated by any suitable machinery which can raise it through the trough and In Fig. 8 I have shown a modification of the head in which it is mounted to push through an opening in the side of the trough toward the opposite side thereof.

The ram can be controlled by hand,if desired; but as it is naturally called into use as soon as the trough receives a tube from the cross-rolls it is preferred tooperate the same automatically, and for this purpose I have provided the following mechanism: Secured'to the end of the trough and extending back some distance therefrom isthe arm I, which carries at its rear end the stop Z in the course of the tube when in the trough, and said stop'l has the opening Z through which the valve-operatin g disk 0 extends,said Valvedisk projecting in its normal position in front of the stop. Z, so that the tube can strike the valve-disk and force it backwardly before it strikes the stop Z. The valve-disk cis carried on the valve-rod m, which extends through the valve-cylinder c and carries the operating-valves leading to points of supply and discharge, as-follows: The pipe n leads from the pumpto the valve-cylinder, the pipe p leads from the valve-cylinder to the baseof the ram-cylinder 7a, the pipe 0 leads to the exits normal position, as illustratedin Fig. 6,

communication is formed between the rampipe p and the exhaust rbetween the pistons m and m but when the ram is to be raised as-the tube strikes against the valve-operating-disk c it forces the valve-rod and its pisoperate it to discharge the tube at one side of the trough, as hereinafter described. Ifind, however, the most suitable machineryv for that purpose to be a fluid-pressure ram and have illustrated the invention in connection with such 'ramand will so describe it. The ram 70 is located under the trough, its cylinder It being supported in such position that as the ram-body is raised from the cylinder it will lift the head It through the trough, the seat a in the trough being of such shape as to permit the head to drop sidewise as it is lifted through the trough to-discharge the tube at one side of the trough. To this end the head It is connected to the ram head 75 bya pivotal joint 71 which, as it will be seen, is located at the side of the head opposite to the cooling-table D, the base of the V-shaped seat h, which isin the center of the head, be-

tons back into the position shown in Fig. 5, when communication is-formed between the supply-pipe n and the ram-pipe 19 between the pistonsm and m I Fluid, such as air under prussure, is employed for the operation of the .ram. The valve is returned to its normal position, as follows: The pipe 3 communicates with thespace k of the cylinder so that as the ram is raised by the fluid under pressure entering through thepipe 10 it is lifted by the air until it passes the port of the pipes, when the air passes through this pipe to the space 8 of the valve-cylinder back of the'valve-piston m and as there is nothing to resistthe forward movement of the valve, the rod passing loosely through the valvehead 0 at the opposite end of the valve-cylinder, the air forces the valve, with its valveoperating diskc, forward into the normal position shown in Fig. 6, so cutting off the supply of air from the pump and forming communication between the ram-pipe p and the exhaust-pipe r and bringing the valve-operating disk into position to be'operated upon by the next tube entering the trough. The valve-cylinder o is shown as a casting having a base portion 0 secured upon a standard 0 extending up from the mill-floor.

In the operation of the invention with the apparatus above described the tube coming from the cross-rolls is delivered upon the rollers e and f, and as the rollers e are running continuously they feed it forward until its forward end strikes on the valve-operating disk 0 and forces it back into the position shown in Fig. 5, when fluid under pressure from the pump passes through the pipe 12, thence to the pipe 19, and thence to the base of the ram-cylinder, operating to raise the ram and through it the discharging-head h, which as it israised through its seat 0. on account of its point of pivoting being to one side thereof, naturally drops over to one side of the trough. The tube has been delivered on the concave top face of the head, and it is held thereby as the head commences to rise, and it is finally forced by the head over against the side of the trough from which it is to be delivered and rolled by means of the head out of the trough and. onto the bars ct, down which it rolls into position to be caught by the fingers g of the endless chain, the corresponding fingers on the different chains en gaging with a single tube and forcing it along the bars at of the cooling-table, carrying it slowly to the point of discharge. When the ram 70 rises past the port of the pipe 8, above referred to, the air will pass through the same and operate the piston-valve m, forcing the same over, cutting off the supply from the pump and opening communication with the exhaust, and the ram and its discharginghead will drop back into normal position ready to operate on the next pipe.

By this apparatus I am enabled to dispense entirely with any workman to remove the pipe from the trough or to care for the pipe after it is delivered from the cross or finishing rollsand am enabled also on account of the peculiar knuckle-head or direction of movement of the discharging-head not only to raise the pipe from the trough, but to discharge the same from the side thereof in position to be taken onto the cooling-table, and to accompli'sh' this automatically through the operation of the tube itself on the valve mechanism, thus making positive operation of the mechanism and savingthe cost of one or more men.

lVhat I claim as my invention, and desire stantially as set forth.

3. The combination of a trough, a receiving-table at one side thereof having a series of traveling chains provided with fingers, a

discharging-head so mounted in the trough as to rise through the same and move toward the table in its upward movement, and guides between the trough and table, substantially as set forth.

4. The combination of a trough, a discharging-head therein, mechanism for feeding the tube longitudinally of the trough, a longitudinally-movable stop at the end of the trough and connections therefrom for automatically operating the discharging-head and thereby discharging the tube from the trough, substantially as set forth. 7

5. The combination of a trough, and a dis charging-head therein, mechanism for raising the head in the trough and a knuckle or pivotal connection between the head and raising mechanism located within the trough and at one side of the head, substantially as set forth.

6. The combination of a trough, a fluidpressure ram located under the trough, a discharging-head mounted within the trough and a knuckle or pivotal connection between the ram and head located within the trough, substantially as set forth.

7. The combination of a trough, a fiuidpressure ram located under the trough, a discharging-head mounted within the trough and a knuckle or pivotal connection between the ram and head located within the trough and at one side of the head, substantially as se forth.

8. The combination of a trough, a discharg ing-head mounted therein, a ram operating the head and valve mechanism at the end of the trough, and in the course of the tube, for operating the ram, substantially as set forth.

9. The combination of a trough, a discharging-head therein, a stop extending beyond the trough in line therewith, and automatic mechanism also in line with the trough for operating the head, substantially as set forth.

10. The combination of a trough, a discharging-head therein, a ram operating the head, and valve mechanism having a valve-disk in line with the trough for operating the ram, substantially as set forth.

11. The combination of a trough, a discharging-head therein, a ram operating the head, a stop at the end of the trough for engaging with the tube, and valve mechanism having a valve-disk also in line with the trough for operating the ram, substantially as set forth.

12. Thecombinationofatrough,adischarging-head therein, a ram operating the head, and valve mechanism having a head or block in line with the trough, said valve mechanism having a pipe communicating with the pump, a pipe communicating with the exhaust, and a pipe leading to the ram, and a valve controlling the ports to said'pipes, substantially as set forth.

13. The combination of a trough, a discharging-head therein, a ram operating the head, and valve mechanism having a head or block in line with the trough, said valve mechanism having a.pipe communicating Withthe pump, In testimony whereof I, the said PETER a pipe communicating with the exhaust, and CHARLES PATTERsoN have hereunto set my a pipe leading to the ram, and avalve eonhand.

trolling the ports to said. pipes, and having l PETER CHARLES PATTERSON.

5 also a pipe leading from the ram to one end Witnesses:

of the Valve forimparting reverse movement JAMES I. KAY, thereto, substantially as set forth, I ROBT; D. TOTTEN. 

